supervised free-ranging - can you truly protect from hawks?

[centrarchid]

I have lots of experience with Cooper's Hawks and Great-horned Owls. Lots with videos and I did little experiments to see what their limits are packing carcasses away and pattern of return to consume a kill. I have also had Red-tailed Hawks (not very often), Ferruginous Hawk (one time during harsh winter), Sharp-shinned Hawks (going after quail sized chicks in pen without hen), Barred Owl (going after juveniles only on moonless nights when Great-horned Owls not also coming in), Short-eared Owl coming into garage after chicks in brooder during an eruption / explosion of population size (dog caught that one, Red-shouldered Hawks (cause no problems), Merlin (caused no problems as seemed more interested in songbirds), and American Kestrels that hunt mice and sparrows around barn. Even with all that I very seldom have all birds penned up. About half a dozen currently roosting in trees scattered around yard. Farm more birds in pens. I have racked up experience by keeping birds for many years and being observant and when need be willing to sleep under stars during winter to see what was going on.

 

[igorsMistress]

I free range my flock and I know it’s always possible that I’ll have losses. We’ve had an owl in the yard after chicks and a hawk as well; the only thing that saved them is that we happened to go outside at the right time and surprised them. Bushes and the like will do nothing against owls, one will flush the prey from under the shrub while the other waits to pounce. I’ve watched the owls try this many times with the quail we kept. The quail were in an aviary and this went on most of the winter. I’ve also lost a rooster to a bird of prey, but he ran out to the big yard where there’s less cover.
I think if you let your flock out you need to expect there may be losses and accept that. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the suburbs or the country. Flocks that free range learn to watch the sky and warn each other, doesn’t matter if there’s a rooster or not.

 

[centrarchid]

I free range my flock and I know it’s always possible that I’ll have losses. We’ve had an owl in the yard after chicks and a hawk as well; the only thing that saved them is that we happened to go outside at the right time and surprised them. Bushes and the like will do nothing against owls, one will flush the prey from under the shrub while the other waits to pounce. I’ve watched the owls try this many times with the quail we kept. The quail were in an aviary and this went on most of the winter. I’ve also lost a rooster to a bird of prey, but he ran out to the big yard where there’s less cover.
I think if you let your flock out you need to expect there may be losses and accept that. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the suburbs or the country. Flocks that free range learn to watch the sky and warn each other, doesn’t matter if there’s a rooster or not.

Owls I have never seen hunting together as a team. I have seen multiple (2 or 3) juveniles hanging out together when waiting for parents to bring back food. Same young birds would follow me around as I closed pens for night. Owls here very much nocturnal with day time hunting only during winter when sky overcast. Owls hunting during day mobbed by songbirds and chickens give alarm calls bring dogs into fray running owls off.

I loose birds, but do not accept it. I make adjustments to reduce future losses, and make adjustments again as needed. Some adjustments temporary as raptors eventually move on even when making occasional kills. This allows continued free-range time with a closed flock where all replacements I breed from my own stock.

 

[igorsMistress]

Owls I have never seen hunting together as a team. I have seen multiple (2 or 3) juveniles hanging out together when waiting for parents to bring back food. Same young birds would follow me around as I closed pens for night. Owls here very much nocturnal with day time hunting only during winter when sky overcast. Owls hunting during day mobbed by songbirds and chickens give alarm calls bring dogs into fray running owls off.

I loose birds, but do not accept it. I make adjustments to reduce future losses, and make adjustments again as needed. Some adjustments temporary as raptors eventually move on even when making occasional kills. This allows continued free-range time with a closed flock where all replacements I breed from my own stock.

We have a pair that raise babies nearby in winter. I’m in a city but it’s still very much a farming community here. Lots of fields for them to hunt and a nice riparian area not far away also for all the water fowl and lots of wild quail also. Owls are an issue in winter and spring here and observing them hunt our quail was interesting and educational.
I of course try to prevent losses, but accept that I can’t prevent them all. I’ve lost only one roo to a predator, the saves we know of were pure chance.

 

[cmom]

When free ranging losses from aerial predator as well as ground predators is a risk you take. We are rural and our land is mostly open pasture. I have had a hawk kill a bird right in front of me. It didn't carry her off but did kill her and another time some chicks were in a small pen next to my DH and a hawk flew in and grabbed a chick and flew off with it. Both times it happened so fast there wasn't time to react until after the fact. I don't free range anymore but my birds have nice large covered pens. A friend lost his rooster to a hawk. It carried the bird off. He said it was a very large hawk so I'm thinking it may have been a hungry eagle. I have seen them around too. This owl killed some of my birds. I have my pens covered with heavy duty netting. I had a couple of pens where I ran short so I put up some crappy netting thinking it would deter aerial predators. The owl went through the netting. I replaced the netting with another piece and moved the birds and put up a camera and the owl came back and went through the new piece of crappy netting. I replaced it with some good netting and it tried again but this time got caught. We got it out and into a cage and called a wildlife rescue that came and got it.

 

[Vicker]

Since putting out crow decoys and adding several black chickens to my flock last winter, I haven't had another hawk issue. I don't expect this to be 100% effective but it has certainly cut down on the problem.